Free Essay. They Came Before Columbus Review

"They Came Before Columbus" book was written by Ivan Van Sertima. Ivan was born in 1935 in Guyana, South America (Sertima, 1976). He was a Guyanese-born associate professor of Africana studies at Rutgers University in the United States but still retained his British citizenship. Ivan was educated at the school of Oriental and African Studies in London. He is a literal critic, a linguist, and an anthropologist all together. As a linguist, Ivan did his undergraduate studies in African languages and literature. He literally worked as a journalist as a broadcaster in the Guyana Information Services. All these formed the background for Ivan's exemplary works of writing that integrated ideas from various cultures, both American and African.

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Various themes are expressed and evident in the book, "They Came Before Columbus." The presence of race differences between Africans and Americans is well illustrated. The scholars in the book believed that Americans were more superior to Blacks (Sertima, 1976). Africans were transported to America to work as slaves. Indians were criticized for building shrines and temples for blacks who could not be allocated leadership positions. Those who acted as hosts to the Africans were considered as Olmecs. Cultural exchange is another theme described in the book. It is believed that the bananas, yams, beans, and gourds all originated from Africa. America thus copied this regenerative farming from Africans. The blacks also transmitted pipe smoking to the Americans. Blacks also took their trading skills in the Americans, and their main trading commodity was a metal spear. Therefore, race and cultural exchange are among the themes illustrated in the book.

The book focuses on attracting the attention of the African-American community by analyzing the prehistoric African contact and diffusion of culture in Central and South America (Staff, 2013). The book helps in viewing the unmistakable face and handprint of Black Africans in Pre-Columbian America and the overwhelming impact on the civilization they found there. The book, therefore, focuses on the heartland of the African cultures. It seeks to eliminate the primitive belief that has occupied the European histories and anthropologies concerning Africans. The book shows what blacks have offered to the world without concentrating much on what they have lost. Such contributions are based in the arts and science.

Apart from the purpose, there are a few points that are presented in the book. The first point is the contact between Africans and Native Americans. It is believed that Columbus had already mastered the trading route to America (Sertima, 1976). Almost half of European's regime was entirely under their dominance through the Islamic Empire. Also, the book illustrates the presence and influence of black Africans in ancient America. Ivan examines the facts of navigation and shipbuilding together with the cultural ideologies that are found in both America and Africa.

Ivan Sertima's ideas described in the book contributed positively to the view of Africans by the Americans. He presented that it is possible to have excellent relationships with each other while respecting one another's civilization (Chengu, 2018). However, Ivan, in his book, has some pitfalls. Despite him describing how trade existed between Africans and Americans, he fails to present and provide a clear outline and evidence of the details of the business. Like the profit margins and the challenges encountered in the trading journey. Sertima's arguments are also extraordinary such as using the famous Olmec stones to represent Africans.

The book, "They Came Before Columbus," contains flaws that could have been improved for better presenting of ideas and understanding. The criticism lies in the way the findings in the book are not scientifically proven (Staff, 2013). Wrong beliefs concerning science and history facts have crowded the great minds of learners in the classroom. Therefore, it could have been right for the points to be collected before illustration in the book. The author could have performed excellent scientific research before the presentation of the scientific facts in the book to avoid misguiding others with wrong information. Better sources that are not outdated could have been used to gather information and ideas to be presented in the book. For the best illustration of the ancient history of pre-Columbian America, Ivan could have based his ideas on well-argued theories and facts.

The book provides benefits to the history learner. After reading the book, I understood the relationship between blacks and America thoroughly. I also got an insight into the Americans civilization before dominance by the Africans. Another lesson that I learned was how race differentiates humans and the relevance of considering race when discriminating against people. I also learned that it is good to gather the actual historical facts before presenting then in the form of writings for others to read. Another thing that I benefited from the book is an understanding of the cultural practices that Africans passed to Americans, such as growing traditional foods like yams.

The book depicts that Africans always sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americans. Therefore, blacks greatly influenced American culture. For example, the culture contributed was the art of building pyramids that originated from Egypt (Sertima, 1976). Africans also passed their skills of navigation to the Americans like the use of boats to cross the ocean fast. Africans also contributed politically through the use of empires like the Holy Roman and Mali.

The book presents that the first Africans to get to America before Columbus were slaves (Staff, 2013). It illustrates that the entire world views Africans as people who cannot produce good leaders. Thus, they should accept to be lead by others and follow all the instructions without questioning or providing their opinions. To improve the image of African countries to the outside world, I would emphasize more scientific and historical research. With these, Africans will get a chance to contribute to global decisions and solving problems. With all these, they will stand out in a better position globally.

In conclusion, the book describes the historical events between Africans and Americans before the arrival of Columbus. Among the themes presented are racial and cultural differences. The book helps the learner to understand more of the African contributions to American civilization. The blacks in the book are viewed as inferior and slaves. Therefore, African countries should emphasize more on research to build their image.

References

Chengu, G. (2018). Before Columbus: How Africans Brought Civilization to America. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.globalresearch.ca/before-columbus-how-africans-brought-civilization-to-america/5407584/amp

Staff, E. (2013). We Came Before Columbus: Who Discovered the Americas. https://www.africanglobe.net/headlines/columbus-discovered-americas/?amp

Van Sertima, I. (1976). They Came Before Columbus. "New York, 136-137.